Psalm 10 – Complain about God to God

Complain about God to God? Is that a good thing? How many of us are afraid to complain to God about Himself? Or think that's a bad thing to do? Maybe even a sin? On the other hand, how many of us are so angry about our issues with God, valid or not, that we don't hesitate to make a list of our complaints and then "let Him have it"?

As for me, I'm in the latter group. And apparently, I'm in good company. David did the same thing in Psalm 10!

Yes, I've been angry at God. Very angry. And not afraid to scream, "Why are you doing this to me?"

As it turns out, and as I eventually learned, my complaints weren't valid.

And my anger was misdirected. Some things, I shouldn't have any anger at all.

Others, I should have looked in the mirror and then screamed at myself.

But it's OK. God can take it.

And guess what. I came to realize a couple of things about being angry at God.

1. If we're angry at God then we do believe in Him.
2. Further, if we're angry at God then we also believe He has the power to do something about our situation.

Once we come to realize those things, we can begin to learn why things happen when we think we don't deserve them.

After all, bad things do happen to good people.

And good things do happen to bad people.

However, as we look at the reality of bad things happening to good people in this Psalm, we must recognize that our situation today is different. As I have pointed out, and will continue to point out as a reminder, David lived under the Old Covenant. We are under the New Covenant. And therefore we have the Holy Spirit.

Things are different. For us. But God is the same.

                     Psalm 10 

     Ps 10:1 Why, O LORD, do you stand far off? 
             Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? 

     Ps 10:2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, 
             who are caught in the schemes he devises. 

     Ps 10:3 He boasts of the cravings of his heart; 
             he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD. 

     Ps 10:4 In his pride the wicked does not seek him; 
             in all his thoughts there is no room for God. 

     Ps 10:5 His ways are always prosperous; 
             he is haughty and your laws are far from him; 
             he sneers at all his enemies. 

     Ps 10:6 He says to himself, “Nothing will shake me; 
             I’ll always be happy and never have trouble.” 

     Ps 10:7 His mouth is full of curses and lies and threats; 
             trouble and evil are under his tongue. 

     Ps 10:8 He lies in wait near the villages; 
             from ambush he murders the innocent, 
             watching in secret for his victims. 

     Ps 10:9 He lies in wait like a lion in cover; 
             he lies in wait to catch the helpless; 
             he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net. 

     Ps 10:10 His victims are crushed, they collapse; 
             they fall under his strength. 

     Ps 10:11 He says to himself, “God has forgotten; 
             he covers his face and never sees.” 

     Ps 10:12 Arise, LORD! Lift up your hand, O God. 
             Do not forget the helpless. 

     Ps 10:13 Why does the wicked man revile God? 
             Why does he say to himself, 
             “He won’t call me to account”? 

     Ps 10:14 But you, O God, do see trouble and grief; 
             you consider it to take it in hand. 
     The victim commits himself to you; 
             you are the helper of the fatherless. 

     Ps 10:15 Break the arm of the wicked and evil man; 
             call him to account for his wickedness 
             that would not be found out. 

     Ps 10:16 The LORD is King for ever and ever; 
             the nations will perish from his land. 

     Ps 10:17 You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted; 
             you encourage them, and you listen to their cry, 

     Ps 10:18 defending the fatherless and the oppressed, 
             in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more. 

Some background on Psalm 10

The excerpt below is from my usual source for this Psalms series. That's why I included it. There is a message in it.

However, it's not my message for today. While I do agree with what it says, that's not what struck me when I read the Psalm this morning. So, read it, learn from it. I even made a note to write about his point of view in the future. But realize, I'm going someplace very different afterwards.

A number of years ago George Gallup, president of the American Institute of Public Opinion, wrote a report of his research into the religious beliefs of Americans entitled “Is America’s Faith for Real?” He was struck by a strange anomaly. On the one hand, the answers to his questions indicated that America is unusually religious. But on the other hand, the same research showed that America’s religious beliefs make little difference in how people actually live and act.